Rev.  Charles  N.  Sinnett 


Historic  Lebnnon 
Lebanon,  Maine, 
and  the  Grand  Work 
of  its 
C  ^n?re>?ptionpl  Church 


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BX7I50 
I.L4C5 
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OCT    12 
Logical  £**£ 


A 


IUN  14  19TP 


Historic    Lebanon 


LEBANON,    MAINE 


AND  THE  GRAND  WORK 


OF  ITS 


Congregational  Church 


IN 


ONE  HUNDRED  AND  THIRTY-EIGHT  YEARS. 


BY  REV.  CHARLES  N.  SINNETT. 


HAVERHILL,   MASS., 

C.    C.    MORSE    &   SON, 

1903. 


3 


^  of  mc^ 

1       UJN  14  1918 


Historic    Lebanon 


LEBANON,     MAINE, 


AND  THE  GRAND  WORK 


OF   ITS 


Congregational  Church 


IN 


ONE   HUNDRED   AND  THIRTY-EIGHT  YEARS 


BY   REV.  CHARLES  N.  SINNETT. 


HAVERHILL,   MASS., 

C.    C.    MORSE    &   SON, 

1903 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH 


OF  THE 


Congregational  Church, 

LEBANON.   MAINE. 


And  so  the  York,  Maine  Congregational  Conference  is  to 
meet  once  more  in  the  church  at  Lebanon  Center  —  and  the 
time  is  this  bright  year  of  1903 ;  and  as  the  pen  of  the  old 
pastor  moves  upon  its  appointed  work  of  making  a  history  of 
this  peculiar  building  and  the  grand  help  which  this  church  has 
widelv  given  through  one  hundred  and  thirty-eight  years,  many 
memories  come  thronging  upon  the  mind  of , the  writer.  Among 
these  are  questions  which  ring  like  the  sentrv's  sharp  challenge, 
and  among  them  is  that  which  God's  people  asked  in  Palestine 
Ion"-  ;i"o.  '•  Will  a  man  leave  the  snows  of  Lebanon"  ? 

The  query  was  answered  in  various  ways  by  those  who 
heard  it  then.  Some  lifted  their  faces  to  the  grand  old  moun- 
tain whose  name  has  just  been  repeated,  and  replied  with  truest 
loyalty,  "  no  !  "  Others  pointed  to  the  famous  cedars  on  these 
heights  as  if  to  say,  "  In  no  other  spot  are  found  such  sturdy 
trunks  as  these  !  "  and  the  head  was  shaken  in  a  firm  negative. 
Still  others  spoke  eloquently  of  how  the  snows  of  Lebanon  sent 
down  streams  to  the  plains  below  when  the  summer  came,  and 
how  the  winds  from  them  were  full  of  coolness  and  healing 
when  the  sultry  gales  would  sap  away  the  people's  life,  and 
these  said,  -'  Leave  these  great  gifts  of  our  God  ?  no,  never,  till 
we  pass  out   into,  the  great  beyond."     And   others  sent  back 


queries  to  fire  the  question  which  had  been  put,  "  Are  not  the 
ridges  and  crags  of  Lebanon  the  symbols  of  God's  eternal 
strength  ?  Do  they  not  daily  teach  us  how  He  will  evermore 
guard  and  keep  us  ?  And  do  we  but  use  the  wood  of  yonder 
mountain  cedar  for  building  our  sacred  places,  because  this  is 
His  handiwork,  and  the  sight  of  it  brings  us  closer  to  Him"  ? 
And  no  doubt  some  expressed  their  belief  with  a  bright  twinkle 
of  their  dark  eyes,  'kyes,  some  will  leave  the  snows  of  Lebanon, 
but  they  will  be  glad  to  come  back  again  !  " 

If  these  men  and  women  of  the  olden  days  did  not  thus 
reply  such  an  answer  has  often  been  heard  among  these  hills  of 
Lebanon,  Me.,  where  the  strong  old  trees  which  grew  here  in 
the  early  days  have  been  called  to  mind  ;  and  where  the  lessons 
of  God's  strength  here  taught  have  been  thankfully  remem- 
bered. I  seem  to  hear  these  words  from  the  lips  of  many  whom 
I  knew  here,  who  have  long  been  praising  God  in  an  upper  life 
for  the  truths  which  they  here  learned  among  the  snows  of 
Lebanon.  And  mixed  with  the  answer  are  the  thoughts  by 
which  the  old  Lebanon  friends  said,  "•  We  want  to  stay  in  this 
old  town  as  long  as  life  shall  last.'' 

And  then  they  went  on  to  tell  me  how  many  of  Lebanon's 
sons  and  daughters  had  gone  far  out  into  the  world.  Some 
had  been  borne  far  away  upon  the  seas  by  white-winged  ships. 
Others  had  made  their  slow  way  to  California  and  its  golden 
treasures.  In  the  south  many  iiad  fought  bravely  for  the  old 
flag,  or  either,  later  on,  had  gone  to  teach  in  Freedom's  schools 
and  make  reputations  of  which  all  who  knew  them  are  still 
proud.  Others  had  gone  here  and  there  over  prairies  and  fields. 
Their  work  had  been  seen  in  all  the  most  important  walks  of 
life.  And  wonderful  scenes  had  they  beheld  ;  strange  friends 
had  been  theirs  ;  the  successes  which  they  won  were  manifold 
and  great.  And  often  the  time  friends  said,  "Their  eyes  are 
dazzled.  The  mind  is  having  the  old  pictures  crowed  out  of 
it."  But  always,  when  thoughts  like  these  were  uttered,  there 
was  some  one  read}7  to  reply,  "  They  see  the  hills  of  Lebanon 
in  many  a  dream  by  night.  And  by  day  there  is  nothing  so 
clear  to  them  as  the  lessons  which  they  learned  in  this  our  old 
Lebanon  church.  They  know  their  present  success  has  its 
largest  foundation  stone  in  the  past  in  our  old  town." 


And  by  and  by  the  while  sails  of  ships  were  seen  coming 
landward  on  the  gray  horizon's  rim,  and  for  their  deeds  glad 
hearts  would  welcome  to  these  hills  of  home.  And  by  and  by 
thr  travellers  from  prairies,  and  city,  and  mart,  and  school, 
went  up  and  down  the  old  roads  and  woodland's  paths.  Again 
in  the  home  they  sat  by  their  mother's  side.  In  the  place 
where  she  used  to  sit  they  knelt  to  ask  of  God,  "  Help  me  to 
carry  on  the  work  which  her  faithful  hands  have  laid  down." 
They  sat  in  this  old  church,  and  amid  all  the  memories  of  the 
missing  faces  and  the  change  which  time  had  wrought,  they 
could  not  forget  to  thank  God  that  as  children  the}''  had  been 
reared  here.  Some  whispered  to  themselves  as  they  bowed 
their  heads  in  prayer,  "  The  people  are  passing  away,  a  thous- 
and old  landmarks  are  gone,  but  the  doors  of  the  Lebanon 
church  must  be  kept  open,"  and  so  this  building  has  been  kept 
in  good  repair.  The  money  for  the  support  of  preaching  has 
been  freely  given.  The  beautiful  parsonage  stands  close  by, 
and  thousands  of  other  proofs  are  seen  that  show  that  they 
were  wise  and  right  who  said,  "  Yes,  SOME  will  leave  the  snows 
of  Lebanon,  but  they  will  come  back  again  !" 

And  I  have  come  as  one  of  the  great  procession.  For 
many  old  ministers  have  returned  here  with  hearts  as  grateful 
as  the  hearts  of  those  who  were  born  here.  And  the  first 
pastor  of  the  church  lies  buried  where  the  first  meeting  house 
stood — no  chance  or  change  could  move  hirn  from  this  hal- 
lowed spot.  And  I  am  as  glad  to  come  as  were  those  who 
have  stood  within  this  church  in  the  past  years,  now  so  many  ! 
And  I  do  not  wonder  that  some  of  you  ask  with  eyes,  if  not  in 
open  question,  '•  Will  a  man  leave  the  snows  of  Lebanon"? 
For  it  was  in  that  wild  winter  of  1876  that  I  said,  "If  ever 
these  drifts  melt  away,  I  shall  go  with  them."  Some  of  you 
here  will  never  forget  that  winter,  when  for  five  succeeding 
Sundays  no  services  could  be  held  in  the  church,  and  when 
upon  other  such  days  only  a  handful  of  us  could  come  together. 
But  when  my  resignation  was  read,  and  some  said  when  they 
knew  how  far  away  I  was  going,  "  We  shall  not  see  him." 
Others  replied,  "Oh,  he  will  come  beck  again  !  "  and  you  kept 
your  firm  belief  in  the  power  of  Lebanon  "  to  have  and  hold," 
though  more  than    twenty  years    rolled   by  before  I  could  meet 


with  you  again.  But  in  all  that  time  I  thought  of  my  lessons 
here  learned  of  faithfulness  to  God  as  abiding  as  these  hills, 
and  since  my  first  coming  there  has  even  been  a  deeper  meaning 
in  two  thoughts  of  David  :  "As  the  mountains  are  round  about 
Jerusalem  so  the  Lord  is  round  about  His  people  from  hence- 
forth even  forever,"  and,  "I  will  lift  up  mine  eyes  unto  the 
hills  from  whence  cometh  my  help,  my  help  cometh  from  the 
Lord,  which  made  heaven  and  earth." 

God  bless  the  old  church  of  Lebanon,  whose  help  has  gone 
shining  out  through  so  many  glad  and  gay  years  ! 

It  is  very  appropriate  that  we  should  meet  as  we  do  in  this 
month.  For,  as  you  all  remember  well,  it  was  on  the  23rd  of 
June,  in  the  year  1765,  that  this  church  was  organized,  with 
much  prayer  and  faith.  The  day  was  also  marked  with  the 
sturdy  activity  which  has  characterized  the  people  of  the  town 
through  its  long  history.  At  that  date  the  first  pastor,  Rev. 
Isaac  Hasey  was  ordained,  and  many  wise  plans  were  laid  for 
the  future  work  of  the  church,  which  also  meant  the  whole 
town  itself,  since  the  town  affairs  were  then  so  largely  under 
the  care  and  blessing  of  the  church.  Tin's  is  seen  in  the  Towns 
charter.  The  original  proprietors  were  required,  in  making 
divisions  of  land  in  the  turnpike,  to  consider  the  first  minister, 
the  ministry,  and  the  schools,  each,  as  one  of  themselves  ;  that 
is,  as  often  as  a  proprietor  should  draw  a  lot  for  himself,  one 
should  be  drawn  for  the  first  minister  settled  in  the  town,  one 
for  the  support  of  the  ministry,  and  one  for  the  support  of  the 
schools  in  the  town.  This  provision  of  the  charter  governed 
the  action  of  the  committee  appointed  by  the  General  Court  to 
lay  out  the  lots  of  the  first  settlers. 

How  well  these  first  settlers  held  to  these  rules  is  sug- 
gested ly  the  names  of  those  among  them,  whose  descendants, 
through  so  many  generations,  have  done  much  for  the  church 
and  town  :  Farnham,  Copp,  Door,  Hassey,  Rives,  Stevens, 
Blaisdell,  Tibbetts,  Kenny,  Walliugford,  McCrelis,  Perkins, 
Corson,  Burrows.  Goodwin,  Yea  ton,  Furltush  and  Cowell. 
The  town  from  which  these  settlers  came  also  gives  good  proof 
of  firm  integrity  and  honor,  for  Berwick,  Kittery,  Somersworth, 
Dover  and  York,  were  the  places  from  which  the  sous  and 
daughters  of  stiudish   stock    came  :    and  what   may  be  said  of 


these  earliest  settlers  maybe  truly  said  of  these  whose  feet 
pressed  steadfastly  to  Lebanon  as  their  owner*  heard  of,  or  saw 
the  stately  pines  upon  her  hills  and  casting  deep  shadows  in 
their  valleys;  or  who  learned  of  the  rich  soil  yearly  watered  by 
the  unfailing  Lebanon  snows. 

A  "dance  at  this  charter  of  the  town  shows  that  by  it 
"the  proprietors  of  the  town  were  required  to  build  a  meeting 
house,  and  to  settle  and  maintain  a  learned  Orthodox  Minister, 
for  the  inhabitants,  and  to  build  him  a  house.  In  1758,  seven 
years  after  the  first  few  settlers  came  hither,  these  proprietors 
erected  a  frame  for  a  meeting  house,  and  the  next  year  it  was 
boarded  and  shingled,  doors  made  and  hung,  a  double  floor 
laid,  and  rough  seats  made  inside,  arranged  in  two  rows,  one 
for  the  men,  and  one  for  the  women.  The  dimensions  of  this 
house  were  30  by  40  feet,  and  two  stories  in  height.  It  was 
erected  upon  the  lot  drawn  for  the  use  of  the  ministry,  and 
stood  upon  an  elevated  spot  of  land  on  the  west  side  of  the  old 
road,  so  called,  about  one-fourth  of  a  mile  southerly  from  the 
house  occupied  by  James  R.  Chamberlain  in  these  later  years. 
In  1759  the  proprietors  also  erected,  on  the  lot,  a  little  to  the 
southeast  of  the  meeting  house,  and  nearer  the  road,  a  frame 
for  the  house  of  the  first  minister.  This  frame  stood  only  a 
short  time  before  it  was  burned  down.  In  1762  the  second 
frame  was  erected,  and  so  far  finished  as  to  render  it  fit  as  a 
.place  in  which  to  keep  a  school.  It  appears,  by  the  proprietor's 
records,  that  during  this,  or  the  preceding  year,  they  hired  one 
Ezra  Thompson  to  preach  and  to  teach  the  school  for  the  term 
of  six  months.  This  was  no  doubt  the  first  preaching  and 
teaching  in  the  town. 

The  name  of  the  town  was  then  "  Towow,"  and  we  hope 
that  this  first  preacher  had  much  to  do  in  changing  it  to  its 
present  good  old  bible  name.  Lebanon  it  has  been  since  the 
incorporation  in  1 T < > 7 ,  or  it  may  have  been  given  at  the  sugges- 
tion of  the  Rev.  Isaac  Hasey.  who  was  ordained  here  two  years 
before  that  name  was  duly  given. 

This  Mr.  Hasey  who  graduated  at  Harvard  College  1702, 
the  first  regular  minister  of  the  Lebanon  Congregational 
Church,  was  settled  here  by  the  proprietors  of  the  town  accord- 
ing to  the  instructions  of  their  giant.     They  were  to  pay  him 


8 

#290.00  daring  the  first  eight  years  of  his  ministry,  and  $245.00 
per  annum  after  these  first  eight  years,  so  long  as  he  should 
continue  the  minister  of  the  town  ;  together  with  the  use  of 
the  house  which  they  had  built  for  him,  and  the  use  of  all  the 
minsterial  land  in  the  town,  and  the  lots  drawn  for  the  first 
minister,  in  fee.  Mr.  Hasey  moved  with  his  family  into  the 
house  provided,  where  he  lived  for  several  years  ;  afterwards 
the  proprietors  made  him  a  present  of  the  house.  Before  this, 
however,  the  minister  had  acquired,  by  purchase,  or  otherwise, 
two  of  the  house  lots,  lying  a  short  distance  southerly  from  the 
meeting  house,  and  on  the  easterly  side  of  the  highway.  To 
one  of  these  lots  Mr.  Hasey  moved  the  house,  and  in  time  he 
made  additions  to  it.  He  lived  until  the  time  of  his  death. 
Oct.  1812,  when  he  was  71  years  of  age.  As  he  was  ordained 
pastor  of  the  church  when  he  was  21  years  of  age  it  will  be 
seen  that  his  veiy  useful  ministry  covered  a  period  of  forty- 
seven  years.  His  influence  is  seen  in  the  work  which  in  that 
period,  and  for  some  years  afterwards,  was  done  upon  the 
church  building.  It  ma}*  be  seen  in  the  position  of  this  very 
building,  for  his  wise  counsel  ever  was,  "  God's  house  must  be 
where  the  majority  of  the  people  can  reach  it,  and  feel  that  it 
is  for  them  and  theirs."  He  was  a  pioneer  in  the  tk  up  town 
church  movement." 

In  1771  the  town  gave  Mi-.  Hasey  the  privilege  to  build  a 
pew  in  the  meeting  house  on  the  right  side  of  the  pulpit.  Dur-« 
ing  the  same  year  they  voted  to  repair  the  meeting  house, 
which  was  faithfully  done  on  the  following  year.  The  rough 
seats  were  mostly  removed  from  the  body  of  the  house,  and 
their  places  supplied  by  pews  ;  the  galleries  were  finished,  and 
pews  erected  across  one  end.  The  pews  throughout  the  church 
were  sold  by  auction  to  private  individuals,  and  the  proceeds 
taken  for  the  payment  of  the  repairs  made.  In  this  house  the 
people  worshiped  until  the  year  1786,  when,  settlers  having 
located  on  what  was  called  the  new  road,  in  the  vicinity  of 
Little  River  Falls,  it  ceased  to  be  the  centre  of  population,  and 
the  town  voted  that  the  meetings  on  the  Lord's  Day  should  be 
holden  half  of  the  time  at  this,  the  center  of  the  town.  By 
1796  the  inhabitants  of  the  town  had  much  increased,  and  the 
town  thus  voted   to  erect  a  new  meeting  house  here.     In  1798 


this  building  was  made  of  strongest  timber  from  the  old  hills, 
and  was  soon  finished  so  that  it  could  be  used  for  worship.  In 
1835  the  present  church  was  builded  in  its  place. 

In  1801  the  old  church  building  was  sold  by  the  town  to 
the  Free  Baptist  Society,  as  a  small  membership  of  that  church 
had  then  been  gathered.  The  old  building  was  taken  down 
that  same  year,  and  moved  to  West  Lebanon  Village. 

As  you  are  well  aware,  about  the  site  of  the  old  Congrega- 
tional Church  of  Lebanon  is  the  largest  cemetery  in  Lebanon. 
Here  lies  the  old  pastor,  Rev.  Isaac  Hasey,  and  almost  all  the 
first  settlers  of  the  town. 

The  second  regular  minister  settled  over  this  church  was 
the  Rev.  Paul  Jewett.  He  came  to  the  town  a  few  months 
after  the  death  of  Rev.  Mr.  Hasey.  He  was  ordained  April  13, 
1814,  and  was  dismissed,  at  his  own  request,  Oct.  5,  18 H>. 
During  these  little  more  than  five  years  the  church  prospered 
and  grew  as  did  few  others  in  all  this  region.  The  word  was 
often  spoken,  "A  second  Paul  is  with  us  !" 

It  was  a  tribute  well  given.  Under  the  preaching  of  a 
single  sermon  of  his  a  dozen  of  strong  men  were  lead  to  earnest 
faith  in  God.  While  he  was  prayerfully  writing  some  of  these 
discourses  the  spirit  would  come  with  great  power  to  some  men 
at  work  in  a  distant  field,  or  to  a  mother  caring  for  her  large 
household.  Young  men  and  women  gave  up  great  dreams  of 
worldly  prosperity  and  decided  to  follow  only  the  guidings  of 
their  Savior.  There  seemed  to  be  no  house  in  the  parish  but 
was  blessed  by  the  work  and  prayer  of  this  true  servant  of 
God.  Large  numbers  not  only  united  with  the  church,  but 
gave  themselves  to  a  long  life  of  great  self-denial  and  trust. 
His  energy  and  strength  seemed  to  be  inexhaustible  ;  and  to 
questions  which  had  long  troubled  others  he  could  give  replies 
which  quickly  banished  doubt  and  fear.  In  strength  and  vigor 
of  intellect  he  has  had  few  peers  in  any  of  the  towns  of  this 
region. 

But  it  was  just  in  this  time  of  wonderful  revival  work  that 
a  great  shadow  loomed  on  the  horizon  of  the  history  of  this 
town  and  church  which  grew  into  a  cloud  whose  influence  has 
not  been  wholly  obliterated  in  the  long  years  which  have  fol- 
lowed.    As  one  said   quaintly  long  ago,    "  The  evil  one  could 


IO 

not   endure   to  see   so   many  souls  slipping   forever  from  his 
clutches !  " 

Its  history  has  emphasized  that  thought  which  one  sees  in- 
scribed in  an  old  English  town : 

"  Where  God  erects  a  house  of  prayer 
The  Devil  also  builds  a  chapel  there  !  " 

Out  of  the  strife  which  begun  between  the  town  and  parish 
over  the  ministerial  lands,  a  bitter  law  suit  grew,  and  was 
carried  on  for  many  years.  This  suit  was  eventually  termi- 
nated in  favor  of  the  parish,  giving  the  ministerial  land  to  the 
Orthodox  Congregational  Society  for  the  support  of  the  minis- 
try, according  to  the  proprietors'  grant.  It  was  also  then  de- 
creed that  the  funds  could  not  thus  be  held  unless  there  was 
always  a  minister  settled  as  pastor  over  the  church.  This  is 
the  reason  why  from  that  date  onward  the  church  records  bear 
the  many  entries  of  a  former  pastor  being  dismissed  and  the 
new  one  installed  as  nearly  on  the  same  stroke  of  time  as  possi- 
ble. It  was  for  this  reason  that,  when  I  had  thought  to  leave 
behind  me  the  snows  of  Lebanon,  no  one  was  found  who  wished 
to  be  installed  as  pastor  here,  and  I  was  still  in  that  office  for  a 
term  of  nearly  12  years!  This  old  suit  has  thus  produced  a 
few  humorous  scenes  to  enliven  its  gloomy  records. 

The  third  regular  pastor  of  this  town  was  the  Rev.  James 
Weston,  and  he  was  ordained  pastor  of  the  church  and  society 
on  the  10th  of  Feb.,  1824.  He  was  a  faithful  laborer  here  until 
June  26,  1836.  A  greater  contrast  in  two  pastors  is  seldom 
seen' than  was  marked  in  Mr.  Weston  and  his  predecessor,  Mr. 
Jewett.  The  former  pastor  had  a  clear  and  ringing  voice. 
Mr.  Weston  was  troubled  with  an  impediment  in  his  speech. 
"Yet,"  says  one  who  knew  him  well,  "in  the  midst  of  some  of 
his  prayers  and  sermons  God  gave  him  such  a  clear  utterance 
that  the  thronged  church  was  hushed  in  wonder,  and  the  appeals 
to  the  Savior  for  a  blessing  on  the  people  were  speedly  an- 
swered." The  former  pastor  had  been  perfectly  feerless  in  his 
approach  to  men  when  he  wished  to  tell  of  their  position  and 
of  the  change  of  life  which  they  at  once  need  to  make.  Mr. 
Weston  was  a  man  of  a  very  modest,  retiring  disposition.  He 
was  so  diffident  at  times  when  he  tVlt  that  God  had  called  him 
to   personal  work   for    some   soul  that  his    hands  trembled  and 


1 1 

great  beads  out  <>f  prespiration  stood  out  upon  his  face.  But 
he  was  so  loving,  faithful  and  persevering  in  all  his  work,  that 
the  Lord  blessed  his  labors  in  a  very  wonderful  way.  In  spite 
of  the  sharp  controversy  between  the  people  of  the  parish  and 
town  there  was  a  great  revival  and  seventy-two  members  were 
added  to  the  church  while  Mr.  Weston  labored  here. 

It  was  during  this  period  of  revival  that  Mr.  Weston  went 
to  see  a.  man  for  whom  he  had  long  been  praying.  He  had 
hoped  to  find  him  at  home,  but  he  was  at  his  work  bench  and 
meant  to  stay  there  "  until  the  minister  had  gone  home  about 
bis  business,"  He  was  surprised  and  angry,  therefore  when 
Mr.  Weston  walked  into  the  shop,  pale  but  earnest.  "  Have 
you  not  some  interest  in  the  revival  which  is  now  in  progress," 
he  asked,  his  voice  shaking  timidly  in  spite  of  all  his  efforts. 
'■  I  have  not,"  was  the  quick  reply,  as  the  man  drove  his  plane 
over  a  board  with  fierce  energy.  Mr.  Weston  was  cut  to  the 
heart  by  the  man's  manner  and  words.  But  he  said  quietly  as 
he  walked  out,  "  I  know  you  will  be  a  christian,"  and  the  very 
next  day  would  come  to  him  that  his  words  which  he  had 
thought  so  poor  and  weak  had  been  of  great  good.  The  man 
could  find  no  peace  in  his  work  or  anything  else,  until  he  had 
fallen  on  his  knees  and  asked  his  Savior  to  forgive  his  sins. 
He  became  a  faithful  Deacon  in  another  church. 

Rev.  Joseph  Loring  succeeded  Mr.  Weston,  and  was  or- 
dained Oct.  12,  1836  and  dismissed  in  Feb.  1853.  His  work 
was  very  helpful  to  many  here. 

After  Mr.  Loring  left,  until  1856  the  pulpit  was  supplied 
by  students  and  ministers  who  were  hired  for  only  a  short 
period. 

When  Rev.  Mr.  Fobes  was  ordained  here  it  was  hoped 
that  he  might  long  remain  with  the  people  ;  but  his  health 
failed  and  he  was  obliged  to  give  up  the  work  in  a  little  over  a 
year.  This  sad  experience  was  paralled  in  the  case  of  Rev. 
Benjamin  G.  Page  the  next  minister  but  one. 

Mr.  Page  was  preceeded  by  Rev.  John  H.  Garmon  who 
remained  slightly  over  5  years,  being  ordained  Sept.  19,  I860 
and  being  dismissed  Sept.  27,  1865. 

On  Nov.  9,  1869  Rev.  John  Parsons  was  installed  as  pastor 
of  the  church,  a  man  of  fine  scholarly  attainments,  and  whose 


12 

earnest  work  will  long  be  remembered.  His  services  would 
have  been  much  longer  continued  had  not  such  a  great  shadow 
come  to  his  home.  Scarlet  fever  took  away  all  his  children  but 
the  son  Charlie.  In  the  midst  of  this  grief  he  felt  that  he  must 
seek  another  home,  and  yet  how  glad  we  were  when  he  could 
visit  among  us  in  the  years  which  followed. 

And  then,  for  two  Sabbaths  in  the  month  of  April,  1874, 
your  old  minister  who  writes  these  words,  preached  here,  on 
the  second  of  these  Sabbaths  accepting  a  call  to  become  pastor 
of  the  church,  and  coming  here  to  live,  as  soon  as  he  graduated 
at  the  Bangor,  Me.,  Seminary  in  the  following  June.  There 
was  plenty  of  snow  in  Lebanon  when  he  first  saw  it  in  the 
April  clays,  but  in  June  the  snowy  flight  of  falling  petals  of 
apple  blossoms  was  in  the  air  and  dotting  the  grass  and  brown 
roads.  The  minister  was  then  a  somewhat  younger  man  than 
he  is  to-day,  and  fears  that  he  did  not  hear  all  the  words  which 
Dea.  Joseph  Grant  spoke  to  him  as  he  drove  him  homeward 
from  the  East  Lebanon  station.  He  had  been  sick  in  school, 
and  had  not  the  usual  stock  of  sermons,  and  this  day  he  was 
haunted  by  the  thought,  "What  will  the  next  one  be  about"? 
He  wished  he  had  not  preached  the  one  from  the  text,  "  Judge 
not  according  to  the  appearance,  but  judge  righteous  judg- 
ment." That,  held  in  reserve,  might  help  the  people  to  wait 
patiently  on  his  ministrations.  Three  years  later  he  found 
that  the  preaching  of  that  sermon  had  helped  to  secure  for  him 
the  pastorate.  Two  men  who  listened  to  it  had  each  thought  it 
for  "  the  other  fellow  "  and  so  had  urged  his  staying  among 
the  snows  of  Lebanon  ;  and  here,  among  the  love  and  prayers 
of  as  true  a  people  as  I  have  found  in  many  states,  or  across  the 
seas,  I  began  my  work.  I  was  ordained  and  installed  here  on 
my  birthday,  May  34,  1874. 

Here  were  the  first  whom  I  received  into  church  member- 
ship. How  well  I  can  see  the  earnest  face  of  the  little  girl  of 
twelve  as  she  told  us  how  much  she  wished  to  unite  with  the 
church,  and  help  all  that  she  could  in  its  work !  Her  splendid 
work  since  then  has  led  many  to  trust  in  the  Savior.  There 
came  others  to  be  enrolled  on  our  church  list,  and  to  go  forth 
to  lives  of  great  usefulness. 

Here  I  married  "  my  first  couple."     It  was  in  the  midst 


of  such  a  thunder  tempest  that  the  nearly  wedded  lady  sprang 
several  inches  from  the  floor,  as  it  then  seemed  to  me,  at  the 
near  fall  of  a  blinding  bolt. 

Here  I  wrote  my  first  childrens'  stories  for  the  Congre- 
gationlist,  and  my  only  bit  of  verse  which  has  ever  been  set 
to  music,  4'  Sailor,  there  are  Prayers  for  Thee." 

How  well  we  can  all  see  the  faces  of  the  dear  old  people 
who  were  with  us  then,  and  of  the  boys  and  girls  who  now,  as 
men  and  women  in  the  great  battle  of  life,  are  scattered  so 
widely,  or  who  are  here  so  nobly  doing  all  they  can  for  the 
helping  of  the  church  and  town. 

Deacon  Charles  Shapleigh  and  sainted  wife,  with  their 
large  family,  came  from  West  Lebanon  way.  Dr.  Samuel  W. 
Jones,  the  ripe  scholar,  and  other  dear  friends  from  West  Leb- 
anon Village,  were  often  here.  The  families  of  Roberts, 
Giants,  Hansens  and  Wiggins,  came  from  the  road  to  the 
west.  From  the  south  came  Mr.  John  Lord  and  son  Stephen, 
Mrs.  Abbie  Horn  and  her  stalwart  sons  ;  the  Blaisdells,  Good- 
wins, and  the  two  Elisha  Shapleigh  families,  Dea.  John  Moody's 
family,  and  that  of  Mr.  Gardner  Moody  and  Mr.  Calvin  Goweh. 
the  Oliver  Shapleighs,  Paul  Smith  and  wife,  and  others,  came 
from  down  that  road.  Nearer  at  hand  were  Mr.  James  Hayes, 
the  Shapleighs  of  the  Center,  the  Wentworths,  the  Dea.  Cham- 
berlin  family.  From  up  the  road  to  the  north  Miss  Mary  Lord, 
the  Noah  Lords,  the  Hersems  ;  Mr.  Frank  Lord  and  Squire 
Millett  Wentworth,  and  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Amasa  Grants  and  the 
Colesons  were  often  with  us. 

And  there  were  others,  who  came  back  to  the  snows  of 
Lebanon.  Richard  Shapleigh  the  successful  business  man  of 
Boston,  who  was  always  ready  to  help,  and  whose  generosity 
we  owe  the  present  beautiful  parsonage,  Judge  Grant  of  Ann 
Arbor,  Mich.,  Miss  Hannah  Lord,  who  had  been  such  a  suc- 
cessful teacher  in  Fisk  University,  Nashville,  Tenn.,  Joseph 
Gerrish  of  West  Lebanon.  Every  summer  brought  such  as 
these  of  whom  the  town  will  always  be  proud.  And  among 
the  strangers  Mr.  Ole  Bull,  the  famous  violinist  of  Norway, 
who  loved  the  place  sincerely. 

It  was  a  weary  day  for  the  little  minister  when  all  these 
were   present  in    church  of  a   Sabbath  morning,  and  some  of 


1 4 

them  were  likely  to  be  at  the  afternoon  service,  which  then 
followed  the  morning  worship  with  only  a  brief  intermission. 
But  these  people  were  all  very  kind,  and  came  again  and  again. 
The  prayer  meetings  which  we  held  in  many  neighboorhoods 
were  always  well  attended,  and  productive  of  much  good.  We 
were  soon  asked  to  preach  at  West  Lebanon  on  Sunday  after- 
noons, and  many  pleasant  memories  remain  of  services  in  the 
Free  Baptist  church  there. 

The  ministers  who  have  preached  here  since  I  left  in  the 
summer  of  1877  are  Rev.  Benjamin  Dodge,  who  remained  for 
about  five  years  ;  Rev.  Mr.  Classon,  Rev.  H.  E.  Thygeson, 
Rev.  W.  W.  Dow,  each  of  these  three  staying  about  two  years. 
Then  came  Rev.  John  E.  Curtiss,  who  found  his  helpful  wife 
among  these  Lebanon  hills,  and  who  remained  here  about  three 
years,  Rev.  A.  E.  Lambert  followed  him,  and  was  succeeded 
by  the  present  pastor,  Rev.  Edward  C.  Haynes.  • 

And  now  some  of  you  will  be  saying  to  me,  "Are  you 
evading  the  one  great  thought  of  sadness  which  must  be  with 
you  with  every  old  name,  and  date,  and  house,  which  you 
mention  "  ?  And  I  shall  answer  promptly  in  the  negative. 
For  I  know  only  too  well  the  pain  which  is  in  your  hearts  as 
you  recall  the  multitudes  who  sleep  in  our  quiet  cemeteries 
here  and  in  those  of  remote  places.  I  know  too  well  what  sad- 
ness is  yours  as  you  think  of  the  many  houses  which  are  closed 
here,  or  which  have  fallen  a  pray  to  the  pitiless  flowers.  I 
know  what  deep  sorrow  is  yours  when  you  see  the  many  vacant 
seats  in  the  church.  For  in  decades  past  the  same  changes 
have  been  going  on  here  as  in  other  towns  around  us,  where 
the  railroads  have  skirted  the  borders  of  the  lands,  and  strong 
villages  have  grown  up  here  and  there,  the  population  has  been 
steadily  decreasing. 

But  amidst  all  this  sadness,  and  pain,  and  sorrow,  I  cannot 
evade  the  other  thoughts  which  also  are  so  dominent  and  clear. 
And  one  of  them  is  the  lesson  of  the  grand  help  which  this  old 
church  has  been  to  this  town  in  these  one  hundred  and  thirty- 
eight  years.  The  first  Town  Clerk  was  the  first  pastor  of  the 
church,  the  scholarly  Rev.  Isaac  Hasey  ;  and  through  all  the 
days  since  then  the  church  has  shaped  the  character  of  all 
the  truest  and  best  of  the  towns  officers,  soldiers,  and  citizens. 


This  may  l>e  clearly  seen  in  the  case  of  Squire  Thomas 
Millet i  Weiitvvorth  who  was  one  of  the  most  influential  men  of 
his  time  in  a  large  group  of  these  town.  It  is  true  that  he 
came  of  a  very  strong  old  family.  But  he  always  averred  that 
his  coming  to  Lebanon  when  he  was  a  very  young  man  had 
most  to  do  with  whatever  strong  or  good  thing  he  did  in  after 
years.  And  in  saying  this  he  would  glance  at  his  wife  who 
was  Rebecca,  daughter  of  Rev.  Isaac  Hasey,  nor  did  he  fail  to 
remember  how  much  he  owed  to  the  influence  of  the  church. 
Thomas  Millett  Wentworth  was  a  member  of  the  Mass.  Legisla- 
ture in  1788,  which  ratified  by  that  State  the  Constitution  of 
the  United  States.  He  represented  Lebanon  in  the  Mass.  Leg- 
islature IT  years.  He  was  one  of  the  wealthiest  men  in  York 
County.  His  son,  bearing  his  name  in  full,  always  attended 
services  in  this  church,  and  exerted  a  great  influence  in  all  the 
town  affairs,  and  often  holding  offices  of  trust  therein. 

And  because  such  men  as  these  have  grown  upon  these 
hills  like  stately  cedars  in  Lebanon  of  old,  I  am  grateful  for 
this  old  church. 

Another  thought  which  must  ever  help  us  as  we  look  on- 
ward is  that  all  the  labor  and  prayers  of  these  years  are  before 
the  love  of  our  Heavenly  Father  who  will  remember  them.  For 
surely  nothing  but  such  Divine  remembrance  and.  blessing  could 
have  guided  this  church  upon  its  way  through  all  its  perils  and 
fears.  For  when  I  came  here  2'.'  years  ago  some  said,  "  I  know 
not  how  long  we  can  keep  up  the  work." 

And  others  would  answer  in  the  brave  spirit  in  which 
spoke  Mrs.  Charles  Shapleigh  in  those  long  years  of  her  chris- 
tian service  which  had  begun  in  the  old  South  Church  in  Bos- 
ton :   "  God  is  in  the  midst  of  her,  she.  shall  not  be  moved." 

Dear  mother  in  Israel,  whom  we  laid  to  rest  on  that  bright 
January  day  in  1891,  we  may  say  of  others  as  we  said  of  her — 

"  Our  old  friend  sleeps,  but  memory  fills 
The  myriad  pages  with  her  love, 
Her  home,  girt  by  these  dear  old  hills, 
Guarded  by  Love  Divine  above. 

To  her  ne'er  seemed  remote,  afar, 
For  all  she  made  it  shine  with  cheer,  . 


i6 


Which,  like  some  strong,  pure-hearted  star, 
Touched  mission  land  and  far-off  year. 

Keep  thou  God's  path  through  this  fair  year, 
Through  all  the  years  which  come  and  go, 

Each  dear  one  blessed  with  memories  clear 
Of  love  which  the  long  years  did  show  : 

Rich  thine  inheritance,  their  prayers 
Light  all  the  paths  where  thou  shalt  roam, 

And  He  shall  help  with  all  thy  cares 
Who  has  led  each  old  friend  safely  home." 


|   PHOTOMOUNT 

I  PAMPHLET  BINDER 

I 

I  "" 

I      Manufactured  by 

jGAYLORD  BROS.  Inc. 

,        Syracuse,  N.  Y. 

I       Stockton,  Calif. 


•tf^p 


BX7150.L4C5S6 

Historic  Lebanon;  Lebanon,  Maine,  and 

■  minu*V?".™f.?!?9ical  Seminary-Speer  Library 


1    1012  00020  8027 


^3& 


• 


